• Chapter on Web Processing

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    Intro Steps

  • Introduction 
  • Planning
  • Creating
  • Publishing

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    Creating: Step 2.3 Test Local Connections

    You now have a large set of web pages whose links need to be tested. Back in the planning stage you were asked to print out a storyboard or site map or create one by hand. Pencil in a checkmark on this map by each page as you find and test its link or put a circle by a page if the link to it is not working. Put the actual file name next to the symbol for it on the map.

    Use a pencil, for these marks will change MANY times in the chapters ahead. You will add other files to your web folder and publish them to your web site. 

    Testing Your Local Files

    Your local files are the ones are your diskette. You are not yet testing their function on the Internet. That is covered in the next section.

    Use any web browser. If using Netscape Navigator: 

    1. Click on File. 
    2. Select Open Page.
    3. Select Navigator.
    4. Open up the Web folder on your disk.
    5. Find and open the file index.html.
    6. Follow the links and test them all.
    If a link does not work, open the web page in Composer. Highlight or select the link that is not working. Click the link icon in the toolbar. Examine the link address. You must have an exact match between a link address and the file name that it seeks. Only the file name of your web page should be shown when you check a link with the link editor button. Any extra characters should be deleted. You can see the actual file names available to you by opening the Web folder on your diskette. If the map indicates that a link should be made but is not yet present, type in some relevant text on the appropriate web page, make the link to the appropriate file name and save it again.

    You first test the links and the look of local files, that is the ones on your diskette. Remember that no one using the Internet can see your files and nor see any changes you make until you post or publish your files to a web server. How can you tell if these pages are not visible the Internet? Look in the location window of your browser. If the address begins with a drive designation, you are looking at a local file, not at a server published file. Server published files will begin with http://. Confusion over where the file you are testing is located will lead to errors, confusion, frustration, hair-pulling and other awful things.

    The most common error is the thought that the file your instructor is seeing is perfect when the changes you made to the file on your disk have not been sent to your web server. If the changes made to the files on your diskette have not been sent to the server, neither I nor your classmates can see the wonderful nature of your work. Further, I can only grade what I can see. But if your local files do not link correctly within the web folder of your diskette or hard drive, they are guaranteed not to work when you publish them in the next section of these instructions.

    The sidebar on the right links to the web course template files that have been published to my web server space. Note that their web addresses in the browser location window all begin with http:// which indicates that these files are coming from an Internet web site.

    Later, in the publish section, you will upload your files to your web site. At that point test the links again from your web server account address.


     
     
     
     

    Optional Sidebar

  • Sample online web course  templates.

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    The errors and incomplete sections of the above course template pages are identical to those with which you were provided.

    In the template files above, the Calendar link from the home page should link to the file monthstable.html, not to calendar.html

    and the file computers.html should link to notebookonline.htm

    Use the directions in 2.2 to to 2.3 to fix these links if you have not already.